Apparatus for treating dried fruit.



I. S. MERRELL. APPARATUS FOR. TREATING DRIED FRUIT.

APPLICATION FILED NOV. 20, 1905.

Patented Sept '13, 1910.

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

IRVING MERRELL, OF SYRACUSE, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOB TO MEBRELL-SOULE COMPANY, OF SYRACUSE, NEW YORK, A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK.

APPARATUS FOR TREATING DRIED FRUIT,

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed November 20, 1905. Serial No. 288,217.

Patented Sept. 13, 1910.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, IRVING S. MERRELL, of Syracuse, in the county of Onondaga, in the State of New York, have invented new and useful Im rovements in Apparatus for Treating Drie Fruits, of which the following, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, is a full, clear, and-exact escription.

Th1s lnvention relates to certain 1m rovements in apparatus for treatlng drie fruit and refers more particularly to a device for softening dried raisins preparatory to seeding the same. I

The broad object is to convey the dried fruit in a comparatively thin layer through a continuously circulating heating agent, such as heated moisture-laden air, steam, or air and steam which is forcibly driven through. such layer so as to envelop and soften the dried units while in transit from the supply hop er to the seeder.

A more specific object is to distribute the dried fruit (as raisins) over the surface of a comparatively broad continuously moving forammous conveyer and to circulate the flexible .wire fabric which is mounted upon rota close comparatively slow speed in the direction indicated by arrow wby a worm --5- and gear 6. The front portion of the supporting drums 2 and 3 within a conveyer extends from and some distance beyond the front side of the housing to receive the fruitfrom a suitable feeding device and permit such fruit to be steamed before entering the .housing, the remaining portion of said conveyer being located wholly within such housing.- The opposite longitudinal edges of this foraminous belt are attached to endless chains -7--- which are engaged with sprocket wheels 8-- on the ends ofthe drums 2 and 3- for imhousmg -4 and is'driven at a parting positive motion to the belt 1 and drum -3, said belt being inclined slightly from front'to rear and having the intermediate portions of its u per and lower sides supported upon suitable idlers 9 to'prevent undue sag thereof. A series of steam heated pipes -10 are arranged withinthe housing 4 directly beneath and practically co-extensive with the area of the lower side of the foraminous conveyer -1, and directl beneath these pipes 10 is located a an 11 which 18 driven by a belt 12 and pulley 13 from any available source of power not shown. The interior of the housin 4- is divided longitudinally near one si le by a partition --14 which is s aced apart from the adjacent side, top an housing forming circulating passages -15, 16 and 17 for the returnof the heating bottom of said fluent after being forced upwardly between the heating pipes 10- and through the foraminous conveyer 1 by the fan 11.

Steam is preferably liberated within the housing 4 through transverse steam paratively small apertures discharging somewhat tangentially against and upwardly through the foramina of conveyer -'1- so as to practically envelop, moisten and soften the dried units which are distributed in a thin layer upon the upper sur-. face of said conveyer. The cool dry fruit, as raisins, is placed in a suitable hopper 19 directly over the front or low end of the conveyer 1- and is .1 spread out transversely and fed downwardly and continuously in limited quantities by eccentric rollers -20- which on account of their eccentric -moti0n shift the discharge passage back and forth so as to facilitate the feed and even distribution of the fruit upon the conveyer. The feed rollers -20 are located outside of the housing and some distance above the adjacent portion of the conveyer, and, just above the frontend of the conveyer in front of the discharge opening of the hopper and also outside of the housing is located an additional steam pipe 21 having lateral apertures for. discharging steam through the falling dried fruit from the rollers 20 to partially moisten and soften the same before entering the housing. This dried fruit falling upon the conveyer from the hopper -19- though slightly pipes -18- each having a series of comheated and moistened by the steam from the pipe -21-- is still comparatively cool and in this condition is carried forwardly and upwardlyinto the housing and through the volume of heated air and steam thereinsuch air and steam being forcibly driven or circulated from the underside upward through the foraminous conveyer and fruit thereon. This circulation is practically (lo-extensive with and upwardly through the entire area of the belt and therefore causes the moisture laden vapor to come in contact with and to envelop all of the fruit units of the entire layerwhile in transit from the supply-hopper to the place of discharge from the conveyer to (the seeding machine.

The speed of travel andlength-of the conveyer and also the degree of moisture and temperature of .the circulating fluent are regulated so as to enable the fruit to attain the desired soft condition while in continuous transit through the housing from the source of supply to the place of discharge from the conveyer and it is found that the efiicient working of the apparatus 'is materially expedited by the use of the fan 11 which keeps the moisture laden air in con tinuous circulation fromthe bottom upward .through the foraminous conveyer and fruit thereon and return through the passage -16- at one side of said .conveyer, said passage 16 forming aby-pass communieating with the, interior of the housing at points above and below the conveyer;

It is now obvious that the dried fruit 7 which is considerably cooler than the heated vapor causes more or less condensation of the moisture which may have been held in suspension and this moisture in the form of a fine mist settles upon the raisins and further expedites the softening process, it being apparent that by housing the steam discharge pipes in the manner described the same circulating air laden with moistureis kept in 'contmuous circulation throughthe foraminous conveyer by the fan -11'-.

As the fruit, (as raisins) is carriedforwardly by the conveyer 1- to the rear' side of the drum -3- it is precipitated by gravity into an underlying trough or hopper 25 in which is located a screw conveyer 26- for feeding the softened raisins to any suitable seeding machine as 27 a portion of which is shown in Fig. 2,

The foregoing description taken in connection with the drawings is believed to be sufficiently clear to enable anyone skilled in the art to construct and operate the machine and while I have described steam and air as the heated softeninga cut it is evident that some dried fruits may e softened by heated air, by steam alone, or by some other fluent eitherunder forced or natural circulation.

What I claim is 1. In an apparatus for treating dried fruit, a housing, a continuously traveling foraminous conveyer within and extending outwardly through an opening in one side of said housing, means at the exterior of the housing for feeding fruit on to the exterior portion of the conveyer, means for steaming the fruit in its passage from said feeding means on to the conveyer, and additionalmeans for moistening the fruit-while in.

transit through the housing on the conveyer.

2. In combination with a closed housing having a return passage for moisture laden air in one side, a continuously moving foraminous conveyer extending into the housing, and mechanical means for continuously circulating such moisture laden air through the conveyer and through said passage.

3. In combination with a housing, an endless foraminous conveyer extending into the housing, means for introducing steam into the housing below the conveyer, a partition between one side but spaced apart from the top and bottom of the housing forming a return passage for moisture laden air,- and mechanism for circulating moisture laden e conveyer and through said air through th return passage.

In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand on this 16th day of 'Nov., 1905.

IRVING s. MERRELL. Witnesses: I

J. M. HAMMEKEN, HOWARD P. DENISON. 

